No. 1 recruit Rashan Gary set for whirlwind final days before decision

DUNWOODY, Ga. — Defensive tackle Rashan Gary, the nation’s No. 1-ranked high school prospect, is down to the final weekend of a four-year recruiting process.

And it seems likely to be a whirlwind.

Though Gary is headed to Clemson for his final official visit this weekend, he said both Alabama coach Nick Saban and Auburn coach Gus Malzahn were lobbying for him to swing through their campuses one more time before before heading back to New Jersey to make his decision.

“It’s getting kind of crazy, but I’m enjoying it,” Gary said Thursday night before receiving the Bobby Dodd National High School Lineman of the Year award from the Touchdown Club of Atlanta.

Michigan has been considered the favorite for the 6-foot-5, 293-pound lineman, largely because Chris Partridge, his former high school coach at Paramus (N.J.) Catholic, joined the Michigan staff last year and was recently promoted to linebackers/special teams coach.

Gary took a fourth trip to Michigan last weekend and and ended up staying two extra days due to the snowstorm that enveloped the East Coast and caused his flight home to be cancelled, giving him even more time around the Wolverines’ players and coaches.

“I had a good feel for Michigan, coming back down I had to get a feel for the classroom and sit down with some of the teachers and see how they run class and see if I could fit within the classroom,” he said. “I could see myself being a student there as more than a football player.”

Michigan, however, isn’t taking any chances. Amidst Gary’s trip to the South, Partridge was scheduled to fly down to Atlanta to meet with him on Thursday night, his mother Jennifer Coney said. Auburn and Ole Miss also sent coaches to meet with Gary at the hotel where the awards presentation took place.

Coney said plans have been set for Gary to announce his college choice on Wednesday from ESPN’s studios in Bristol, Conn. ESPN has said the announcement will be at 1 p.m. ET. He will subsequently appear on several ESPN radio and television shows.

“They have the whole ‘carwash’ thing set up for him,” Coney said. “That was pretty exciting. It’s a once in a lifetime opportunity so we’ll make the most of it.”

If things go according to plan, however, Gary will have his mind made up at least two days before heading to ESPN. He said once he returns to New Jersey on Sunday, he will sit down with his mother, stepfather, cousin and aunt among others — “Might be 100 of us sitting at the table,” he said — to discuss the pros and cons of each school, which have been meticulously detailed in a notebook he and his mother carried on every visit.

Gary is expected to choose between Michigan, Auburn, Ole Miss, Southern Cal and Clemson, which he picked over Alabama for his final official visit.

“I only went to Clemson once and got a good feel,” he said. “I’m going back to make sure that feeling didn’t change. Plus my uncle lives 15 minutes away.”

But Saban — college football’s ultimately closer — hasn’t given up and was on the phone with Gary earlier Thursday, lobbying for one more chance. It’s unclear whether Gary will swing through Alabama or head straight home from Clemson after that visit wraps up.

“He just told me that ‘Bama really wants me and give them another try before I leave,” Gary said.

Rashan, you want to be the best, play with the best! "Da'Shawn Hand, a defensive end from Virginia, was the top-rated recruit by many experts and his choice came down to Alabama or Michigan. He picked the Tide."

With the Gulo's it's always next year, we'll win. GoBlewtz, this year was next year, last year was a next year, every year's a next year. There's nuthin' to be afraid of with J Ira and Nicki Harris Family, Head football Coach

@cmc70mi@snortinbuck6 Michigan is the greatest team in college football history as the winningest team of all time at all levels and its not even close. As far as the best team in its own state drivel, you are daft.UM beats MSU in the all time series by a whopping 2 out of every 3 games they've ever played on average in the all time series.With 11 national championships, a Big Ten record 41 football championships and a winning record over all time top 6 football powers Ohio State, Notre Dame, Nebraska, and PSU, and ranked as a consensus all time top 25 university in the WORLD academically by the London Times ,Arwu, QS, and leading other annual rankings of the best colleges on the planet and the only university with the prestige and clout to have a defensive player win the Heisman ,it is so easy to see " why" not if Gary will choose mighty Michigan on Letter of Intent signing day. Case CLOSED!

Are you seriously going to count that win? That goes down as the luckiest win in the history of college football. Like Chris Spielman said, Michigan has served notice. So for all the Spartys and Bucknuts that have enjoyed success over Michigan the last ten years...............IT IS OVER. Soon the power of big ten football and college football in particular will return to the Big Blue. Spartys and Bucknuts can return to your rightful place where your football programs are as pathetic as your academics.

@Roll_Tide@jacquelinelj123 That is traditional Alabama mentality. That's because none of you people in the south can read beyond a 3rd grade education. Some people want athletics and academics. At Michigan, they can get both if they want. By the way, we have your skunk dilhilly!

Ricky Powers, Marcus Ray, Charles Woodson - All great football players at UM. I was hired to tutor them in algebra in Angell Hall and none of these three could even solve a quadratic equation. Get over yourself with your idiotic comment 57.

Well, the Buckeyes aren't going anywhere, but I see Sparty's run coming to an end. I think "The Game" will return to be the premium matchup in the conference and a consistently meaningful game in the playoff discussion each season.

@Roll_Tide@Wolve57 No he did not say UM classes for jocks are a joke .What he said was that he a student athlete there received " an excellent education at Michigan" which is ranked as the third toughest curriculum across the board along with Cal Berkeley and MIT in the top three nationally. He did add something refreshingly honest that..." At all Schools ".... Universities often steer" some " of their athletes toward easier academic majors and for these athletes only do they receive a meaningless degree, relatively speaking.

His problem with saying that Truth is that he ,then, excluded ONLY his team Stanford ! This of course is patently false! UM and its Alums jumped on the Stanford excluded false drivel and proved conclusively that Stanford does indeed not only admit jocks who would not otherwise not be accepted but, worse, are in fact steered to meaningless joke majors and course offerings.

Harbaugh later apologized and said he was quoted out of context.

The TRUTH is that Stanford and Brown among all academic public and private elites are considered NOTRIOUSLY to be the two easiest Mickey mouse schools for its students there! Ouch, but true!

Even after he left mighty Michigan Harbaugh declared that ,academically ( the obvious),the top 25 in the WORLD ranked UM is a " Great University" .

So..Mr " out of context" jealous of UM hater.... You lose. Case CLOSED!

@cmc70mi@MgoAzul@snortinbuck6 We all live in the past and you are about to return to the asswhoopin you received from the Blue before 2005. I am going to enjoy seeing your program tank right back to where you came from, LOL!

@MgoAzul When was the last time your program win a national championship? 1997, wasn't it? Tied with Nebraska, right? During the same time period from 1997 to 2016, how many national championships did Alabama win? FIVE. Why wouldn't someone with so much upside like Gary not want to come to 'Bama for a repeat in 2016-2017? ROLL TIDE!

@Roll_Tide@MgoAzul Bama, Bama, Bama, LMAO First, you BAMA folk will know what it is like to be a Michigan State Spartan once Jim's recruits take your team to the wood shed. Just ask Nick Saban what it was like at MSU, LOL. Secondly, you will NOT out recruit anyone in just one more year. Then, the party for Tide will be over. You will be the ones to get ROLLED!